How Good Is Naazmi Johnston

The woman behind the rest of the British Empire’s fears? Naazmi Johnston. 

What makes the sleek, lithe, 165cm-tall Johnston so good at her trade is her grace on her feet Images: Getty Images

Not since Japanese-Australian Kasumi Takahashi claimed all five individual medals in 1994 has an Aussie rhythmic gymnast looked so dangerous leading into a Commonwealth Games. The woman behind the rest of the British Empire’s fears? NaUnlike most of her peers, the 21-year-old’s kept at it post the usual retirement age for Olympic-level competitors of 19, meaning she boasts the experience needed for a Takahashi-like raid on next month’s Games in Delhi.

WHAT’S HER STORY?

Johnston’s from solid rhythmic gymnastic stock; each of her four siblings has been consumed by the sport at one time or another, particularly older sister, Shaneez, who you might remember claiming two silver and three bronze

at the ’98 Comm Games. As an eight-year-old, Naazmi would sit and watch the older Johnstons and their friends in the gym, then sneak away to experiment with various apparatus on her own.

It’s not cutting a long story too short to say “soon after that, she found herself representing Australia at international meets” because that’s exactly how the story panned out for the young NSW-based star. She’s already among the most experienced rhythmic gymnasts Australia has produced, having appeared at the Melbourne Commonwealth Games, the Beijing Olympics (where she finished a credible 22nd) and the past three World Championships – she’ll make her fourth appearance at the 30th FIG Rhythmic Gymnastics World Champs in Moscow this month.

Rhythmic gymnasts perform with apparatus, not on them. Athletes are given a score out of 30 for each routine with ribbon, rope, ball, clubs and hoop, one of which is dropped every few years from the rotation by FIG. What makes the sleek, lithe, 165cm-tall Johnston so good at her trade is her grace on her feet, which can easily transport you back to your favourite stage musical. When the ball looks as though it’s going to thud into the ground and roll away embarrassingly towards the judges’ table, she’ll be there to make a catch Mark Taylor would be proud of. Indeed, her reaction time reminds you of Tom’s ability to somehow stay unright while chasing Jerry across a floor of marbles with a chandelier balancing on his nose. Johnston’s quick across the floor, too, according to her coach, Sydney Olympian Danielle LeRay. “Her past coaches have developed her around her speed and taught her to do very intricate things with the apparatus,” LeRay says. “She’s a lot more experienced than any other rhythmic gymnast we’ve had and that’s why she’s getting such great results. And she’s improving all the time.

“Most other countries are in a building phase, in which their newer gymnasts are coming  through, but because Naazmi has continued on, she’s one of the more experienced gymnasts. She goes into the Commonwealth Games in a very good position. Australia really hasn’t been in a position like this for a long time.”

Yeah, yeah ... that’s all promising-sounding stuff, but what about that interesting name, the one which is about to be on every Commonwealth Games junky’s lips in October? “Mum kind of made it up,” reports Naazmi. “There’s an Indian Bollywood star who’s name is Shabana Azmi. My Mum came up with Naazmi from that.”

WHO’S SHE LIKE?

No one, according to LeRay. Not Shaneez, not Kasumi ... “She’s very unique – it’s something a lot of people say about her. She has her own look. It’s very different to the European technique.”

“There are a lot of gymnasts out there,” Johnston tells Inside Sport, “who are a lot more flexible than me, but I’ve got quite high-value skills, still, with my pivot and leaps, so I kind of get my marks up there with those. I’m also quite a consistent gymnast, I guess. Usually at meets I can pull out a good routine.” Just start engraving those gold medals now, you kind, Delhi folk.

– James Smith

What do they say?

“Six gold medals at the Commonwealth Games – that’s the aim we have for Naazmi [including the team medal]. Five is still genuinely realistic, though. Based on last year’s world titles, she was the highest-ranked gymnast among all the individual gymnasts in the Commonwealth. She just has to be 100 per cent on the day and she can do it.”

– Johnston’s coach, Danielle LeRay

“At the last Commonwealth Games, the Canadians were very strong. They’re definitely our main contenders for a gold in the teams. The Cypress individuals are also very good. A lot of my Mum’s side of the family lives in the Maldives – nice and close to where the Comm Games are being held. They’ve never seen me compete; it’ll be great that they’ll be able to go over and watch.”

– Naazmi Johnston